A strong upper level low coupled with moderate wind shear aided in the development of a few strong to severe storms across the tri-state area. The severe storms remained across southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia, but one strong storm did knock a single tree down in Walton county.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS TAE wrote it up.
A strong upper level low coupled with moderate wind shear aided in the development of a few strong to severe storms across the tri-state area. The severe storms remained across southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia, but one strong storm did knock a single tree down in Walton county.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Tallahassee, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 23, 9:30 AM CST, 3 hours 38 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 1130 AM EDT Fri Mar 23 2012 .UPDATE...Band of showers and thunderstorms, associated with the deep upper low over the Missouri, has finally begun to push into the southeast Alabama and the eastern Florida Panhandle. Several storms just outside of the forecast area have exhibited strong rotation over the past several hours, so the situation will be monitored closely as activity spreads farther east. 12Z sounding and latest SPC meso-analysis suggests CAPE of 1500+j/kg this afternoon to the east of the current line. Fortunately, low- and deep-layer shear also drops off dramatically with eastward extent. This should limit the coverage of severe wx. However, an isolated severe storm or two cannot be ruled out, especially over SE Alabama and the panhandle. Updated the grids this morning to account for ongoing conditions, with higher PoP to the west, and slightly lower PoPs to the east. Otherwise, no signficant changes needed this morning. && .AVIATION...Showers and thunderstorms will begin to impact KDHN by early afternoon, with gusty winds and low cigs possible. Otherwise, scattered TSRA will be possible near the remainder of the terminals by late afternoon. VFR conditions are anticipated away the storms into the evening. Additional storms are expected on Saturday. && .MARINE...Winds and seas have continued to diminish over the waters this morning as the gradient weakens ahead of the approaching front. No signficant changes were needed for the marine forecast this morning. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Tallahassee 84 63 80 57 82 / 40 40 60 40 0 Panama City 78 67 77 62 77 / 50 50 60 20 0 Dothan 81 63 81 56 81 / 60 50 50 20 0 Albany 82 63 79 55 80 / 60 50 70 50 10 Valdosta 83 60 80 58 80 / 40 40 70 50 20 Cross City 85 62 81 65 81 / 30 20 50 40 0 Apalachicola 76 68 76 65 77 / 30 30 50 30 0 && .TAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... AL...None. GA...None. FL...None. GM...None. && Camp/Mroczka
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 409 AM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012 ALZ065>069-FLZ007>019-026>029-034-108-112-114-115-118-127-128-134- GAZ120>131-142>148-155>161-GMZ730-750-755-765-770-775-240815- COFFEE-DALE-HENRY-GENEVA-HOUSTON-INLAND WALTON-CENTRAL WALTON- HOLMES-WASHINGTON-JACKSON-INLAND BAY-CALHOUN-INLAND GULF- INLAND FRANKLIN-GADSDEN-LEON-INLAND JEFFERSON-MADISON-LIBERTY- INLAND WAKULLA-INLAND TAYLOR-LAFAYETTE-INLAND DIXIE-SOUTH WALTON- COASTAL BAY-COASTAL GULF-COASTAL FRANKLIN-COASTAL JEFFERSON- COASTAL WAKULLA-COASTAL TAYLOR-COASTAL DIXIE-QUITMAN-CLAY- RANDOLPH-TERRELL-DOUGHERTY-LEE-WORTH-TURNER-TIFT-BEN HILL-IRWIN- EARLY-MILLER-BAKER-MITCHELL-COLQUITT-COOK-BERRIEN-SEMINOLE- DECATUR-GRADY-THOMAS-BROOKS-LOWNDES-LANIER- APALACHEE BAY OR COASTAL WATERS FROM KEATON BEACH TO OCHLOCKONEE RIVER FL OUT TO 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM APALACHICOLA TO DESTIN FL OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM OCHLOCKONEE RIVER TO APALACHICOLA FL OUT TO 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM SUWANNEE RIVER TO KEATON BEACH OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM APALACHICOLA TO DESTIN FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM SUWANNEE RIVER TO APALACHICOLA FL FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 409 AM EDT FRI MAR 23 2012 /309 AM CDT FRI MAR 23 2012/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST ALABAMA... SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL GEORGIA...AND THE FLORIDA BIG BEND AND PANHANDLE...AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT... THERE IS A MODERATE RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS ALONG THE FLORIDA BEACHES TODAY. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INCH CLOSER TO THE WESTERN FORECAST AREA THROUGH TONIGHT. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ALONG WITH GUSTY WINDS ARE EXPECTED. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL BE STRONG TO POSSIBLY SEVERE WITH DAMAGING GUSTS THE MAIN ISSUE. THEIR FOCUS WILL BE ACROSS SOUTHEAST ALABAMA AND ADJACENT SOUTHWEST GEORGIA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY... A COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP FROM WEST TO EAST ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH LATE SATURDAY NIGHT OR EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS AND GUSTY WINDS WILL PRECEDE THE FRONT ON SATURDAY. WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER WITH THIS SYSTEM IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME...BUT SOME STORMS MAY BE SEVERE INTO SATURDAY EVENING WITH THE FOCUS ACROSS SOUTHERN GEORGIA AND THE INLAND WESTERN BIG BEND. A DRIER AIR MASS ALONG WITH COOLER TEMPERATURES WILL FILTER INTO THE REGION SUNDAY INTO THE BEGINNING OF NEXT WEEK. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...VISIT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEBSITE ON THE INTERNET AT WEATHER.GOV...THEN CLICK ON YOUR AREA OF INTEREST ON THE NATIONAL MAP. BLOCK
The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 35 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:08 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A single tree was blown down along Highway 83 near County Road 185. No other damage was reported in the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Florida in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Florida, March 2012
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 362788.